Review: Fifty Shades Freed

The high-gloss, soft-core film adaptations of E.L. James' wildly popular Fifty Shades trilogy have always been unbothered by logic, coherence or, most of the time, pleasing anyone outside the novels' rabid fan base. Yet they have had their merits, most particularly Dakota Johnson who can finally move on from the role that has shackled as much as shaped her career. Unfortunately for her co-star Jamie Dornan, the role of the kink-centric Christian Grey has exposed him as a performer whose limited range works best within the parameters of a specific role, such as the magnetic killer in the British series, The Fall.

Indeed, the ever-comely Johnson has been the franchise's salvation and she proves her worth once again in Fifty Shades Freed, the ultimate chapter of the battle-of-the-sexes soap opera. Her Anastasia Steele is now adjusting to life as Mrs. Christian Grey, asserting control over her husband's characteristic possessiveness by keeping her maiden name at work and tolerating the new security team Christian has hired since her former boss, Jack Hyde (Eric Johnson), has been not only stalking her but breaking into Christian's corporate headquarters and absconding with some computer files.

Of course, there's still the matter of Mr. Grey himself, whom she's still training to behave like a normal human being outside the bedroom. "Talk. Listen. Work stuff out," she reminds him when he does things without consulting her, harbours secrets in the name of protecting her, and shuts down when she broaches his troubled past or the possibility of starting their own family. "I'm not ready to share you with anyone," he says, patently horrified at the thought of another human being inhabiting her body. As silly as the series has been and still is, it has always been about the dynamics at play in any committed relationship or, for lack of a better word, control - who seems to have it, who actually has it, and the constant shifting of power from one partner to another.

Generally, the franchise has always kept such deeper readings of its source material in the periphery and Fifty Shades Freed does nothing to buck that trend. Fifty Shades has never pretended to be anything other than escapist trash and there's something to be applauded in that dedicated self-awareness. All of its energies are devoted to seeing beautiful people wearing beautiful clothes, surrounded by beautiful things, and having beautifully-presented sex. And yet...one can't help but wonder what Adrian Lyne, the maestro of thoughtfully titillating works such as Indecent Proposal, Lolita, Unfaithful, and Fifty Shades' spiritual forebear 91/2 Weeks, might have brought to the proceedings.

Fifty Shades Freed

Directed by: James Foley

Written by: Niall Johnson; based on the novel by E.L. James

Starring: Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan, Eric Johnson, Kim Basinger, Max Martini, Marcia Gay Harden, Rita Ora, Luke Grimes, Tyler Hoechlin, Brant Daugherty, Arielle Kebbel, Eloise Mumford, Jennifer Ehle